28/08/2026
Ethiopia Media Authority Renews Reuters’ Reporting Licenses after Six-Month Suspension Following Discussions with Reuters Executives
Following discussions with senior executives of Reuters, the Ethiopia Media Authority has renewed the reporting licenses of Reuters’ three permanent news agency correspondents, whose licenses had been suspended in Ethiopia for the past six months.
During a discussion, Haimanot Zeleke, Director General of the Ethiopia Media Authority, explained to Nick Tattersall, Executive Editor of Reuters and Silvia Aloisi, Reuters’ Africa Editor, that based on the Authority’s media monitoring findings, some of the media content Reuters had disseminated about Ethiopia over the past seven months had been inconsistent with Ethiopia’s laws, the Media Proclamation, and the country’s national interests, and had also failed to comply with professional journalistic ethics.
The Director General further noted that Reuters has been operating in Ethiopia through its permanently licensed news agency correspondents, as permitted under Ethiopian law and the Media Proclamation, while also producing a significant volume of media reports through its correspondents based in various countries.
However, the Director General explained that, more recently, some Reuter’s reports concerning Ethiopia had raised concerns regarding balance, accuracy, credibility, and objectivity. Referring to the dates and subjects of the reports in question, she explained to the Reuters executives that some of the reports appeared to be one-sided and contained issues that were considered violations of Ethiopian law, the Media Proclamation, and professional journalistic standards. In response, the Reuters executives agreed that the news organization would take the necessary corrective measures and issue appropriate corrections where required.
For their part, the Reuters executives explained that Reuters is an independent media organization and follows strict editorial guidelines to ensure that its reporting is balanced, based on sufficient information, and free from bias. They also acknowledged that errors can occasionally occur and stated that, where such errors occur, Reuters apologizes and issues corrections as appropriate.
The Reuters executives expressed their strong respect for Ethiopia and emphasized their firm belief that, given the country’s population and economic significance, Ethiopia deserves broad and comprehensive international media coverage. They further stated that Reuters is committed to respecting Ethiopian law and wishes to provide coverage of the country’s political, economic, and cultural affairs. They also affirmed that Reuters journalists are expected to adhere to professional journalistic ethics, understand Ethiopia’s national interests, and respect the country’s position.
At the conclusion of the discussions, the Ethiopia Media Authority renewed the reporting licenses of Reuters’ permanent news agency correspondents in Ethiopia, which had previously been suspended temporarily in connection with concerns regarding violations of the law and professional journalistic ethics.
Finally, the Authority called on all relevant stakeholders to take note that the licenses of Reuters’ permanent news agency correspondents in Ethiopia have been renewed and to provide them with the necessary cooperation to carry out their work.
